A Compact Apartment in Melbourne Celebrates Small Footprint Life

2019-03-14 14:33

Located in a 1970s walk up apartment in Melbourne, Australia, ‘Type Street Apartment’ is a small, 35 square metre, one bedroom flat that has been recently renovated by Jack Chen, the architect behind Tsai Design, for his own use. The small size of the project belies the extent of its scope: the apartment was designed as a blueprint for small footprint life in support of the ‘tiny house movement’ which questions the modern-day lifestyle of living in excess. The central question that Chen attempts to answer is “How might we fit a big house into a small unit?” The trick to answering such a dilemma the architect explains is knowing where it pays to be generous. The result is a compact apartment that elegantly combines space for entertaining, a home office and a place of rest in a setting of subtle sophistication. In its original condition, the apartment had no working kitchen, an awkward layout, and no outdoor space. Chen’s ingenious solution in tackling these problems is based in layering and overlapping: the key to planning for small spaces is to allow for two different functions to co- exist in the same space at different times. This type of functionality not only demands clever and elegant design solutions but also depends on exquisite craftsmanship for the detailing of the flexible joinery in order to effortlessly switch between the two functions.

“街型公寓”位于澳大利亚墨尔本一栋20世纪70年代的步行公寓里，是一套35平方米的小公寓，最近由蔡英文设计(Tsai Design)的建筑师杰克·陈(Jack Chen)修缮，供他自己使用。这个项目的小规模掩盖了它的范围：这套公寓被设计成一个小足迹生活的蓝图，以支持“小房子运动”，这对现代生活方式的过度生活提出了质疑。陈先生试图回答的核心问题是：“我们怎样才能把一所大房子装进一个小单位？”建筑师解释说，要解决这种困境，诀窍是要知道慷慨在哪里是值得的。其结果是一个紧凑的公寓，优雅地结合了娱乐的空间，一个家庭办公室和一个在微妙的复杂环境中休息的地方。在原来的情况下，公寓没有工作厨房，布局尴尬，也没有室外空间。陈在解决这些问题上的巧妙办法是层次分明和重叠的：规划小空间的关键是让两个不同的功能在不同的时间在同一个空间中共存。这种功能不仅需要巧妙而优雅的设计解决方案，而且还需要精湛的工艺来完成柔性细木工的详细设计，以便在这两种功能之间毫不费力地切换。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Two inventive solutions the team came up with are a retractable sliding panel with a slide out dining table and a fold-up work station, which both effortlessly disappear when not needed. Wall systems like these, along with multifunctional cabinetry that allow an abundance of storage space in every room, were realized with the help of a professional cabinetmaker specializing in high-end hotels who gave Chen’s team the confidence to find the best solution through numerous prototypes. Visually, the apartment is divided into two zones, the service areas which are dominated by timber finishes, and the living areas rendered in white. Equipped with three metres of bench space and ample concealed storage, the four-metre long kitchen is wholly encased in timber, from the veneer joinery and wall panels, to the floor and ceiling surfaces, which allow the kitchen area to be perceived as a separate space from the all-white living room despite comprising a single volume.

团队提出了两种创造性的解决方案，一种是可伸缩的滑动面板，另一种是可滑动的餐桌和折叠工作站，这两种解决方案在不需要时都会毫不费力地消失。像这样的墙壁系统，以及允许每个房间都有充足存储空间的多功能橱柜，都是在一家专门从事高端酒店的专业橱柜制造商的帮助下实现的，后者让陈的团队有信心通过众多的原型找到最好的解决方案。从视觉上看，公寓分为两个区域，一个是以木材装饰为主的服务区，另一个是白色的生活区。厨房配备了三米长的长凳空间和充足的隐蔽储藏室，全部用木材包裹起来，从单板细木工和墙板到地板和天花板表面，这使得厨房区域可以被看作是一个独立于全白色客厅的空间，尽管只有一卷空间。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Photo © Tess Kelly.

照片是泰丝·凯利。

Also clad in timber, the bathroom is separated from the kitchen by a glass partition which provides the kitchen with much needed daylight borrowed from the bathroom. This internal window also allows direct views of the bathroom’s green wall, a moss-covered surface, overlaid with various potted plants that makes up for the lack of an outdoor space. When privacy is required, the transparent glazing is turned translucent with the push of a button. Meanwhile, the living room and adjoining bedroom, which can be separated by a another retractable panel, are enveloped in white while the silvery blue woven vinyl flooring, a contemporary reference to traditional Japanese straw mats, imbues the space with a sense of softness. Additional design solutions, including mirrored cabinetry and skirting which make the living room feel bigger, a retractable clothesline for maximum use of the bathroom, and concealed air conditioning in the bedroom, are further proof of how Chen has used the apartment’s small size as an opportunity to demonstrate that elegance and comfort are all about good design.

浴室也被用材隔开，浴室与厨房之间用玻璃隔板隔开，为厨房提供了从浴室借来的急需的日光。这个内部窗户还可以直接看到浴室的绿色墙壁，这是一种覆盖着苔藓的表面，上面覆盖着各种各样的盆栽植物，弥补了室外空间的不足。当需要隐私时，通过按下按钮，透明的玻璃会变成半透明的。与此同时，客厅和相邻的卧室可以用另一个可伸缩的面板隔开，被白色包裹着，而银色的蓝色编织的乙烯基地板，是对日本传统草席的现代借鉴，赋予了空间一种柔软的感觉。更多的设计解决方案，包括镜子橱柜和围裙，让客厅感觉更大，一条可伸缩的晾衣绳，最大限度地利用浴室，以及卧室里隐藏的空调，这些都进一步证明了陈冠希如何利用这套公寓的小尺寸作为机会，展示优雅和舒适都在于良好的设计。